Translations of Tamil Poetic works that span 2000 years

Archive for the month “March, 2018”

Think of the efforts by elders (of his clan)and lofty fame of your own clan;It’d be good if you accept gifts from his hills – where waterfalls bring down rich gems – and betroth this budding girl to him;But if you decide based on their gifts ,even majestic chariot riding Sembian’s -who captured his foes’ standards in Kalumalam battle-Panguni festival celebrating Urandhaialong with Ulli festival celebrating Vanjiwill be lesser in value (for our girl).

He is from hill country. Her folks are from the plains. They belong to different clans. Both of them have fallen in love. He has send elders from his clan to her house, with gifts, asking for her hand in marriage. Her father and brothers aren’t receptive. They aren’t aware of the couple’s love affair. But her mother knows. This poem is her mother telling them to accept the wedding proposal.

“These elders have taken such pains to walk all the way to our house and brought gifts for our daughter. Think of that. Also think of the name and fame of our clan. Taking these factors into account it would be better if you accept for marriage proposal of our budding daughter with the man from the hills. His hills are so rich that the flowing waterfalls rake in gems from the hills. If you think that these gifts that they have brought in aren’t valuable enough, there are no gifts that are equal in value to our daughter. Even Panguni festival celebrating Sembian’s (Chola King) Urandhai and Ulli festival celebrating Cheran’s Vanji are no match for our daughter”.

”இவள் வருமுலை ஆகம்” – ‘This girl’s body with budding breasts’. I’ve used budding girl. Her mother hints that her daughter is in love with him, by saying “consider the pride of our clan”. With ‘waterfalls that rake in gems’, she hints that his country is wealthy enough to give her daughter in marriage to him.

Today is Panguni Uttharam festival in Tamil Nadu. It is celebrated across Murukan temples in the month of Panguni. This poem is one of the earliest mentions of Panguni festival celebrated in the banks of Cauvery river near Urandhai (present day Uraiyur, Tiruchi). From the description in Akanaanooru – 137, it must have been a festival heralding arrival of summer that later morphed into a festival in Murukan temples. Vanji is generally thought to be near present day Kodungallur in Kerala. Karur in Tamil Nadu was also called Vanji later.

This is a verse from Nammalwar’s Thiruvai Mozhi. Nammalwar is the most prolific of the 12 Alwars (Vaishnavite Saints) and has penned 1352 of the 4000 verses in Vaishnavite canon.

In this set of verses he imagines himself as a woman in love with Krishna. She says “Oh Gods! What shall I do now. This night stretches like seven aeons in front of me. This night weakens my soul as Krishna, with Chakra in his hand, hasn’t come to meet me. Because of his absence, even this cool breeze singes me much hotter than a fiery blaze.”

தைவந்த – is interpreted as ‘caressing’ in Vaishnavite commentaries, though I can’t find that meaning in Tamil lexicon. My instict was to interpret it as ‘cool breeze in the month of Thai’. But I’ve gone with the standard commentaries.

This is an oft quoted verse from Thirumoolar’s Thirumandhiram, dated to around 5th Century CE. When one sees a toy elephant, one doesn’t see the wood out of which the toy is made. The artisan’s skill makes one believe it is an elephant, not a chunk of wood. When one realises that it is nothing but a chunk of wood, the elephant vanishes from sight. Similarly, when one sees only the worldly elements that make up this world, one doesn’t realise the divine. They think that only the elements are real. But when one realises the divine, the elements vanish in the divine.

பார் முதல் பூதம் – 5 physical elements (air,land,water,sky,fire).

Thirumoolar lived around 5th Century AD (though there’s lot of debate about the chronology). He penned over 3000 verses, collected together as Thirumandhiram. This forms the 10th Thirumurai of the Saivite canon

This is a popular Kurunthokai poem. The rooster has crowed. Hearing that her heart skips a beat and she is afraid. Because the arrival of dawn means separation from her lover who is in tight embrace with her. The outstanding phrase here is ‘வாள் போல் வைகறை’ – sword like dawn. Dawn has no mercy and is going to sever the lovers apart, like a sword does.

The Tamil poem says ‘cuckoo crows the rooster’. I have used the more common English version ‘cock-a-doodle-do’ instead of ‘cuckoo’.

One shouldn’t give into inactivity thinking that the task at hand is hard to do. The efforts put in will give the strength needed to complete the job.

There’s an ambiguity in the second line. If you read பெருமை as power / might , then ‘effort put in will give the strength needed’. If you read பெருமை as Laurel, then ‘effort put in will bring laurels’.

Since you agreed, I passed on the message, to him, the lord from the hills; he waits at the place we chose; Now you say “Let today pass by”;My limbs are tired and weary;Other than to flutterlike a tender shoot amidst fire, there’s nothing else I can do.

She has decided to elope with him and has sent him message through her friend. They have fixed a point to meet. Now at the last minute, she is having second thoughts and is jittery. Her natural shyness is holding her back. She says to her friend, “Let today pass. I will go tomorrow”. Her friend knows that she needs a push to act upon her decision. So she says, “I am tired, my hands and legs are weary . I tremble like a tender shoot amidst fire. There is nothing I can do”, implying she can’t go and tell him of the change in plans.